'Letters To Jackie' Kicks Off '13 AFI Docs Film Festival; Newseum Hosts Opening Night Celebration

NORTHWEST -- The summer of Audi began in earnest yesterday evening, as the German luxury auto manufacturer served as the marquee sponsor behind the American Film Institute's 2013 AFI Docs Film Festival, which runs throughout Washington from now through June 23rd.

Formerly known as Silverdocs, the 11th incarnation of the venerable documentary showcase kicked off with an opening night screening of the film titled "Letters to Jackie: Remembering President Kennedy".

Based on the book of the same name, the two hour film features the reading, by 20 of today's top actors, of some of the thousands of letters of condolence sent to then First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy in the wake of President John F. Kennedy's assassination back in 1963.

While none of the documentary's readers were able to make last night's banner event, a handful of the letter writers themselves were remarkably in attendance, as was film director Bill Couturié and book author Ellen Fitzpatrick.

Joining them for the screening and post event celebration inside the Newseum were hundreds of festival attendees and supporters, including Congressman Steve Cohen, Cosmopolitan Magazine Editor-in-Chief Joanna Coles, and Audi President and CEO Scott Keogh.

An internationally recognized event that draws some 27,000 documentary enthusiasts, policy makers, and thought leaders each year, the AFI Docs Film Festival "honors excellence in filmmaking, supports the diverse voices and free expression of independent storytellers and celebrates the power of documentary to improve our understanding of the world."

If you agree, consider sending them your own letter of support.